Brett Kavanaugh's anonymous accuser has officially identified herself, and here's what she had to say

On September 14th, The New Yorker reported on a letter from a woman who claimed that Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh attempted to sexually assault her at a high school party in the early 1980s. At the time, Kavanaugh’s accuser wished to remain anonymous, but on September 16th, she revealed herself to be California professor and research psychologist Christine Blasey Ford.

In her first public interview about the allegations, Ford spoke to TheWashington Postto explain the pain the incident caused—and to provide evidence it happened. She gave the Post notes from two 2012 therapy sessions to confirm that she has, in fact, discussed the traumatic incident before, and her husband corroborated her account. In August, at the advice of her lawyer, Ford also took a polygraph test, which further supports her account of the attack.

She said that during the attempted assault, Kavanaugh, who was drunk, pinned her to a bed and covered her mouth so she couldn’t call for help.

Ford said journalists have approached her at her office, and even called her colleagues about her. She had also begun to hear inaccurate rumors about herself.

"These are all the ills that I was trying to avoid," she told the Post. "Now I feel like my civic responsibility is outweighing my anguish and terror about retaliation."

On the September 17th episode of CNN’s New Day, Ford’s attorney said Ford would be willing to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee of called upon.

“Victims need to be able to control when and whether their stories become public... No effort was made to dissuade her from coming forward. This was entirely this woman's decision,” says the attorney for Kavanaugh accuser Christine Blasey Ford https://t.co/ldiFVBCMo0pic.twitter.com/BRDzQA4iRO

Kavanaugh has denied Ford's charge against him, telling The New Yorker, "I categorically and unequivocally deny this allegation. I did not do this back in high school or at any time."

Mark Judge, one of Kavanaugh’s former classmates—who allegedly assisted Kavanaugh in attacking Ford—has also dismissed the claim, saying that he has “no recollection of that.”

So far, the Senate still plans to vote on Kavanaugh’s appointment on September 20th. According to The New York Times, Senator Chuck Grassley, the head of the Judiciary Committee, will attempt to allow Republicans and Democrats to question Kavanaugh about the accusation before then.

Kavanaugh is close to attaining one of the most powerful positions in the country, so it’s crucial that we listen to Ford’s story. We commend her for her immense bravery, and we sincerely hope that the Senate takes these accusations extremely seriously.